The California Air Resources Board (ARB) is again allowing operators of off-road large-spark-ignition (LSI) engine-powered equipment fleets to exclude certain forklifts and other LSI equipment from the fleet average emission level (FAEL) standards contained in the LSI regulation.

ARB issued program advisories extending exclusions from FAEL standards calculations for an additional year to 16 April 2011.

The exemptions under MSC 10-15 and 10-16 involve greater than three-litre displacement LSI engine equipment and fully controlled late model-year LSI engine equipment fleets. The first FAEL standard became effective on 1 January 2009 (Forkliftaction.com News #391) and LSI equipment not excluded by the program advisories must meet that standard.

ARB has not started enforcing the FAEL standards yet and may not do so until the agency receives approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency of a regulatory waiver, says Mark Williams, an air pollution specialist with the zero emissions vehicle implementation section in ARB's mobile source control division. Williams says that waiver could happen some time this year.

Separately, ARB opted to review and possibly modify regulations involving diesel engines including those in forklifts. (Forkliftaction.com News #459).

"So far, I have received no indication that the board intends to pursue actions similar to those in the in-use off-road diesel arena with respect to the LSI regulation," Williams says.

Sacramento-based ARB is a department of the California Environmental Protection Agency.